The following includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention(s). It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art, or material, to the presently described or claimed inventions, or that any publication or document that is specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to the field of seam sealing and more specifically relates to a lip and tape system for use in seam sealing during flooring installations.
2. Description of the Related Art
Floor covering is a term to generically describe any finish material applied over a floor structure to provide a walking surface and may include ‘flooring’. Materials almost always classified as floor coverings may include carpet(s), area rugs, and resilient flooring such as linoleum or vinyl flooring. Materials commonly referred to as flooring may include wood flooring, ceramic tile, stone, terrazzo, and various seamless chemical floor coatings. Modern residential and commercial buildings use various types of flooring materials to provide aesthetically-pleasing and comfortable surfaces to walk upon. These flooring materials must be durable for extended periods of time, thus specialized processes during construction must be adhered to to ensure longevity of the product. Traditionally, a subfloor is used to provide the foundation for the overlaid flooring to provide the necessary support. Special purpose subfloors like floating floors, raised floors or sprung floors may be laid upon another underlying subfloor which provides the structural strength.
The choice of material for floor covering may be affected by factors such as cost, endurance, noise insulation, comfort and desired cleaning effort. Some types of flooring should not be installed below grade (lower than ground level), such as laminate or hardwood. This particular flooring option should generally be avoided where there may be moisture or condensation or properly protected, as discussed subsequently herein. Many different species of wood are fabricated into wood flooring in two primary forms: plank and parquet. Hardwoods are typically much more durable than softwoods. Laminate is a popular floor covering that appears similar to hardwood but is made with a plywood or medium density fiberboard (“MDF”) core with a plastic laminate top layer. HDF laminate consists of high density fiberboard topped by one or more layers of decorative paper and a transparent protective layer. These flooring options have become popular because of their reasonable cost, ease of installation, pleasing aesthetic qualities and relative durability. If not installed correctly, these laminates may become compromised by moisture ruining their fit and finish. Use of a vapor barrier may provide a feasible solution to this problem.
A vapor barrier is often used to refer to any material, typically a plastic or foil sheet that resists diffusion/wicking of moisture through walls, ceilings and floor assemblies of buildings. Vapor barriers may be used between laminate or wood flooring and the subfloor to substantially prevent water vapor from rising through the subflooring and damaging the wood flooring, especially important when installing wood flooring over concrete. A Polyethylene vapor barrier of 4 mil. or thicker is typically required to put under the laminate floor. Another alternative installation is to use a 2-in-1 foam underlay with a built in vapor barrier. A reliable means for joining the vapor barrier is needed to ensure its integrity.
Traditional lip and tape systems commonly used traditionally have minimal amounts of adhesion at the seam, which may compromise the integrity of the vapor barrier. This point of compromise is generally located at the seam. Traditional methods of sealing the seam of a vapor barrier underlayment consist of joining the sections of underlayment with an overlapping film using a thin strip of adhesive. The lack of provided adhesive coverage can reduce the integrity of the vapor seal. As afore-mentioned if the vapor barrier is compromised, moisture can penetrate and cause the floor to swell and break down. Also, the process of laminating film to foam may be tedious, complex, and may produce hazardous fumes. Further, using the traditional systems may increase the length of installation time of a flooring project, causing additional expense. These flooring materials must be durable for extended periods of time. A more efficient solution is necessary.
Various attempts have been made to solve the above-mentioned problems such as those found in U.S. Pat. And Pub. U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,979,867; 6,453,632; 2006/0130416; 2003/0077433; 3,985,198; and 5,894,700. This prior art is representative of seam sealing. None of the above inventions and patents, taken either singly or in combination, is seen to describe the invention as claimed.
Ideally, a seal guard lip & tape system should be installation-friendly and, yet would operate reliably and be manufactured at a modest expense. Thus, a need exists for a reliable seal guard lip & tape system to protect flooring and to avoid the above-mentioned problems.